Wake up. Check e-mail. Sit on butt. Get realllly hungry. Sit on butt more and respond to e-mails. Get reallllllly hungry and start feeling like ick. Sit a little longer. Just one more e-mail. Decide that you can’t work while feeling like ick, so go get breakfast. A quick one. Come back to the computer. Eat while reading more e-mails. Get to work! Take a shower about noon. Plan to work out later. 6pm rolls around. Family is home, must cook dinner. No time to work out. Your head feels like mush. You are crabby and just want to veg-out. But things need to be done! The laundry is piling up. The sink is dirty. Is it bedtime yet?
Sound familiar at all? Hopefully, you are better at your own self-care than this.
The thing is, I really love my work! I wake up in the morning most days feeling gung-ho and I just can’t wait to jump on that computer to get started. It’s a blessing for sure, but sometimes it makes it even harder to step away and practice a little health and wellness.
Most days, I really have to push myself to take breaks because I get so wrapped up in the fun things I am doing. Even creativity needs some downtime.
They say “a woman’s work is never done” and that’s pretty true. But I also think “an artist’s work is never done.” I’m both. Does that mean I’m screwed? Lol. It’s our creative duty to keep coming up with new ideas and projects, but it’s also what we love to do!
That being said, it is imperative to take breaks or we risk creative burn-out. It’s happened to me more than once, so I’m speaking from experience here. Life after grad school was a prime example, and it took me nearly a year to recover.
I by no means have this self-care thing down, but I do know a thing or two about what it takes. Putting it into action is another story! In the style of Oprah, here’s what I know for sure:
- I have to take care of myself first in order to best take care of others.
- Giving myself downtime usually leads me to my best ideas.
- When I eat healthy and exercise, I have more energy throughout the day.
- Eating a protein based breakfast, going for a walk with my dog, and taking a shower right away in the morning tends to make me more efficient the rest of the day.
- Having one day a week away from the house and computer is extremely rejuvenating.
- 15 minutes of just sitting outside can do wonders to recharge the mind (plus, that Vitamin D is good stuff).
- Stepping away from the computer to get my hands dirty in a creative activity is immensely fulfilling.
- I need vacations from time to time.
- It is perfectly acceptable to turn the computer off after working hours to be wholeheartedly with family. People and e-mails can wait.
- I don’t have to do things perfectly all the time.
- I can say no to doing things that don’t interest me or will not be good for me.
- I can say Yes! to things that really excite me to my core even if I think others may not approve.
You know? It’s good to see those affirmations written down. I’ll have to come back to these when I feel my self-care slipping.
Now I want to know, what do you do to take care of yourself? Are you good about practicing self-care, or do you often let it slide until you hit a breaking point? What are the things you know for sure about taking care of yourself?
And to help you remember to take care of yourself, I’ve created a pretty desktop wallpaper for you to download. Just click on the image above.
The Declaration of You will be published by North Light Craft Books this summer, with readers getting all the permission they’ve craved to step passionately into their lives, discover how they and their gifts are unique and uncover what they are meant to do! I’m thrilled to participate in this tour alongside over 100 other creative bloggers. Learn more – and join us! – by clicking here.
I love your list. I love the "say no" sentiment. I think we too often say yes out of guilt, but taking that back is a major energy boost. Great post!
My recent post My Declaration: Self-care
Yes, Gail! It's a very hard one for me too. But I'm trying1 Thanks for stopping by and sharing!
I've declared to get out in the sunshine as much as possible this summer. Every five minutes sitting outside feeling the warmth on my skin and heating up my clothing is so comforting and energising.
Kerry,
That's a great declaration! When I get outside early in the day and get some sun, it just puts the whole day in the right direction. Yay for summer! Thanks for stopping by!
Great post!… I definitely get "taking a break so that we dont have a creative burn out". We are all on the same journey… finding our way to better self care. Thanks for sharing!
Thanks for saying hello Shawn! I hope that your journey involves lots of self-care!
Thanks for the reminder to take breaks! I need to get better at stepping away from the computer throughout the day, and at night 🙂
My recent post Loving You
It’s so hard, but so worth it!